Don’t Forget to Sign Your Tax Return!
Tip It!I know that many of you file taxes electronically, but for those of you that still file a paper return, here’s a tip: Don’t forget to sign your return! I only bring this up because, after years of filing electronically, we used a tax pro this year and ended up filing a paper return. And I almost (almost!) forgot to sign it. Almost, as in I slipped it into the envelope and was about to seal it when I realized that my wife and I needed to sign it. Oh, how that would’ve sucked. But I remembered, and now I’m reminding you.
Sign your tax return!
Published on April 13th, 2007 - 17 Comments
Filed under: Taxes
About the author: Nickel is the founder and editor-in-chief of this site. He's a thirty-something family man who has been writing about personal finance since 2005, and guess what? He's on Twitter!
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April 13th, 2007 at 9:35 am
Also make sure that you put everything that is required into the envelope before mailing it.
I just got my tax return sent back to me yesterday because the state wanted me to include Schedule 1 to explain why I have a $2.00 deduction to my income on line 15.
April 13th, 2007 at 9:46 am
Why *do* you have a $2 deduction on line 15?
April 13th, 2007 at 10:37 am
I remembered to sign our return, but *almost* forgot to have my husband sign it. I had forgotten how many things go with the paper return after a few years of e-filing. Since we had to pay this year, we had the check and the payment voucher along with it.
And don’t forget *proper postage* if you have a thick stack of papers in the envelope.
April 13th, 2007 at 1:54 pm
I did exactly the same thing: Folded up the big wad of papers, stuffed it in the envelope and almost licked it before I remembered to sign it.
April 13th, 2007 at 5:05 pm
I actually forgot to sign it last year. In case you’re curious, they just send it back to you with a note asking you to sign it. Also, if you file electronically, you may still need to submit a signature in some cases.
April 14th, 2007 at 4:18 am
Stuff all your receipts for write-offs in the envelope too. I have forgotten to do that in the past.
Tax time is such a pain…
April 14th, 2007 at 1:47 pm
Crediteria – you don’t need to submit receipts; if you file by mail, all you need to submit are forms that indicate withholding (W-2s, some 1099s, some social security statements)
April 14th, 2007 at 6:52 pm
Thanks for the reminder, Nickel!
April 15th, 2007 at 9:06 am
Believe it or not: I actually forgot to sign my state return. I was shocked! They just sent me a form for me and hubby to sign and that was that.
stupid, stupid, stupid!
April 16th, 2007 at 1:51 am
I think I read somewhere that some of the most common things that trigger an audit are using the wrong SSN or forgetting to sign your tax return.
April 17th, 2007 at 9:29 am
We forgot to sign the check that was enclosed in the tax retun. Anyone know what will happen next?
Thanks!
April 21st, 2007 at 1:56 pm
I forgot to sign both my federal and state return checks. They cashed the federal one anyway, but still waiting on my state one… if anyone else made that same mistake and was worried.
April 15th, 2009 at 12:43 pm
I forgot to sign my return! And I mailed it yesterday….Thanks for letting others know what will happen. I thought I might have to copy and send the whole thing again, signed of course. I owe so not waiting for any $$.
January 31st, 2010 at 9:42 am
I just put my federal return in a mailbox and the realized i didn’t put the irs address label on the envelope. “Internal Revenue processing center” is printed in the field where the label is supposed to go. Will it still get to them? My return address and sufficient postage were on the envelope. Thanks.
March 29th, 2010 at 2:17 pm
If you dont sign your return before you mail it, about how long does it take for them to mail you a form to sign?
April 16th, 2010 at 3:06 pm
I forgot to sign my return and 2 days before I was supposed to get my refund they sent me a letter to sign and send back. Now it will probable take them another monthe to process it! lol. How did it take for them to sent your refund after you’ve sent the signed letter / any other info they requested?
March 1st, 2011 at 3:02 am
PLEASE HELP!!!
Where do I return the papers after I sign them? To the address it was sent back to me from OR to the original address I sent it to first?